


I Only Have Guys For You

by Missy



Category: The Adventures of Brisco County Jr.
Genre: Action/Adventure, Bounty Hunters, Cotillions, Dances, Enemies to Friends, F/M, Falling In Love, Friends to Lovers, Humor, Makeover, Makeovers That Snare An Unintended Mate, Romance, Some Light Love Triangularity, Unrequited Amanda/Brisco If You Squint, Western, Women Being Critical Of Women To Women Supporting Women, shoot outs
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-19
Updated: 2018-06-19
Packaged: 2019-05-25 09:38:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,843
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14974394
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Missy/pseuds/Missy
Summary: Amanda can't figure out why Brisco likes Dixie.  Brisco can't figure out if he likes Dixie or Amanda.  Bowler has a crush on Amanda.  And Dixie only seems to loves money.  Doesn't she?Watch our adventurers untangle their hearts and figure out what's going out while perusing a bounty on two men who are not who they appear to be in "I Only Have Guys For You!"





	I Only Have Guys For You

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Ultra](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ultra/gifts).



> I tried to make them as triangular as possible, then Bowler jumped out of the woodwork and I somehow ended up with a Bowler/Amanda subplot. I really hope you like this!

“What on earth do you see in that woman?”

That was the fourth time Amanda had asked Brisco that question. They were on a train to Appaloosa from Jalisco, trying to beat Bowler to the Grayson Brothers, who were the most wanted men in the county at the moment. Brisco needed this bounty more than he needed anything else; he had a hotel bill to pay with the Westerfield Club and wanted to make sure that Amanda was getting her fair share as well.

Her question – and the clear jealousy written between the lines of it – made Brisco nervous. He couldn’t explain what it was that pulled him toward Dixie like a magnet. Only that every time he saw her the chemistry between them washed away all of his questions. Which made him wonder why he felt funny whenever Amanda looked at him sideways. Women. He loved and respected and adored them but couldn’t hope to understand their motives half the time. “Dixie is..well….there’s a certain feeling a man gets around a woman like her.”

Amanda snickered. “Oh, I understand. Spicy britches?”

He was immediately aghast. “Watch your language! Your father would kill me if he heard you talking like that.”

“Brisco, my dad’s taken up with twins. He doesn’t get to treat me like a little girl hiding ‘round my mama’s skirts anymore.” She shrugged. “I know you and Dixie were…alone together a lot back in Jalisco.” 

“Well, yes,” he said, and rubbed at his red cheeks.

“And you know how dangerous that is! You saw how she was with Big Smith. She’d sell her own mother for a buffalo nickel. Why, I have half a mind to wonder if that story of hers about being a lady of the revolution and helping the downtrodden was the truth!”

“Amanda!” Brisco said, surprising himself with his own sharp tone. She frowned and shuffled her feet. “You saw the people she was helping, and you saw how much she did for them. I think Dixie’s got her own sense of morality, and true, she might bend it now and again – but it’s not as if we’re angels ourselves.”

“Well…” remarked Amanda.

“Well, well,” he replied lightly. “Come on, the train’s supposed to stop in ten minutes – when we get in I’ll buy you a meal.”

“Good,” she said. “I paid for the last two. Don’t you save any of your half of the bounties?”

“I happen to save most of them,” he said proudly. “Just…not the last two because of the bills we’ve been leaving behind.” He shook his head. “We need to avoid any more shoot outs. Panes of glass are expensive to replace.”

“Mmm,” she said. “Well, let me get a little shut-eye. Don’t suppose we’ll be getting much rest when we get there.”

“Right,” he said. He watched her push her hat over her eyes, and soon her even breathing signaled that she’d fallen asleep.

Before the train howled its way to a stop she’d rested her head against his shoulder, her breath dusting along his neck.

 

 

****

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Appaloosa was amazingly hot. Brisco found himself fanning his brow with the brim of his hat, and even Amanda looked a little worse for wear as she dunked her kerchief in one of the horse toughs and blotted her upper arms with the cool water. They waited in the sun for Sherriff Coltrain to finally make his way out of the station, and both of them smiled thinly when he finally emerged.

“Mister County, Miss Wickwire – I’m afraid you’re rather late,” he said. “Y’see, a gentleman already came through and brought the Graysons in. Fella by the name of…”

“Lord Bowler,” they said together quite glumly. 

“Why yes! How did you know?”

“It’s a long story,” Brisco said. 

“Well, I don’t want you to waste your time. It’s late enough in the evening; won’t be a train headed back out until past seven in the morning. We’re having our spring cotillion tonight, and everyone’s gonna be there – fine food and dancing. I’d be pleased if you’d both attend.”

“I’m not one for fancy dancin’,” said Amanda. 

But Brisco gently nudged her and said, “Miss Wickwire and I would be honored. As long as you give us rooming faculties…”

“…The finest in town, over the Midvale Supper Club, several doors down.” He grinned. “There’s a lovely young lady in town who’s playing most nights, and she’s going to be playing the cotillion tonight. Her name is Dixie Cousins.”

Brisco’s eyes lit up, and he knew Amanda could see it. Guilt filled him. “You hired Miss Cousins to play a cotillion? Isn’t that like hiring Jenny Lind to strip on a burlesque stage?”

“Now, Amanda…”

“Well…” Amanda said. 

“I do believe I heard someone mention my name.” Brisco glanced over his shoulder, and there was Dixie in her traveling clothes, watching them with amusement in her face. She was carrying a lace parasol to shade her features from the sun, and looked every inch the lady in a maroon traveling costume.

“I didn’t mean any harm, Miss Cousins,” Amanda said. 

“No harm taken,” she said. “Hopefully I’ll see you both at the cotillion. And Brisco – I hope I’ll see you sooner.”

Amanda glowered after Dixie, who swanned down the street without even a moment’s hesitation. Brisco watched her make her way back to the hotel in silent contemplation. There was something about that woman. There just…was.

 

 

****

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Amanda sat by herself alone in her motel room, fretting about her own ridiculousness. It was bad enough that Brisco didn’t seem to be aware that she was alive; now Dixie was here? Who could hope to compete with a woman like that?

A knock sounded at the door. “Amanda?” It was Dixie. Just the person she didn’t want to see.

She swaggered to it and yanked the door open. “Miss Cousins, I’m not in the mood…”

Dixie planted her hands upon her hips. “Well, neither am I – but I saw those looks you were throwing Brisco. I hoped to offer you my help.”

“Help with what?” Amanda wondered.

“Well, tonight’s the cotillion, and you want to look nice – so I thought I’d offer my ladylike assistance. To even the playing field – and because every girl has the right to look beautiful. That's what the sisters at the convent taught me when i was growing up. I’ve got a spare dress that should be your size, and there are things I can do with make-up. And well...” She shrugged. "I don't think us hating each other's getting us anywhere."

Out of all of the things Dixie had told her, only one of them stuck. “You were raised in a convent?!” Amanda asked. Dixie narrowed her eyes. “Again, no offense.” Amanda considered her options. Really, what other options did she have?

“All right. But don’t touch my hair," Amanda said.

“I won’t,” Dixie promised, and then rang for a maid to draw them a bath.

 

 

****

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After taking a bath and managing some lunch, Brisco had borrowed a suit off of the man running the restaurant downstairs from the barroom and changed into it in his room. The suit was oversized and its collar was itchy, but the thing had room for his gun at the hip pocket so he wasn’t going to complain. Sitting in the lobby, he spotted a familiar man in a dark suit nearby having a drink and couldn’t resist approaching him.

“Bowler! What in the hell are you doing here?”

“What does it look like, Brisco? Having a drink,” Bowler said. “With my thick, fat winnings. Heh heh,” he chortled.

“C’mon, Bowler that was my bounty fair and square!” 

“Well, you know what they say – finders keep, losers weep – while paying the tab!”

“Ha ha,” said Brisco, who vowed to himself that he wasn't about to pay for it. “Who’re you waiting for?”

“Just killing time before the cotillion. You get invited too?”

“Me and Amanda,” he said.

“You’re gonna take Miss Amanda to the dance?” Bowler shook his head, but there was something sparkling in his eyes when he talked about Amanda that Brisco didn't understand. “No offense, Brisco, but that girl’s tougher than saddle hide. You think she can blend with the crème de la crème of Appaloosa?”

Brisco pointed toward the grand hotel’s staircase. “Take a look at that and tell me what you think.”

After a minute, even Brisco was gawking at the sight of Amanda Wickwire walking down those steps with her hair tied up, wearing a sweet violet-colored dress and a lace fan in her hand, arm-in-arm with Dixie Cousins. She looked all right in the finery of a lady, all right. Almost elegant. It clashed thoroughly with the way she was wobbling in her white high-heeled boots, but she still looked the part. 

When Brisco glanced back at Bowler he was utterly confused by the picture he saw. Bowler’s jaw had dropped to the floor, and he was staring at Amanda like she was the only woman on earth.

Brisco gently elbowed Bowler. “Show some grace, wouldya?” 

“I’m trying!” Bowler scowled. “I just didn’t expect all of that 'womanly essence!'”

Amanda stumbled one more time before she reached the two of them. Dixie caught Amanda by an elbow and dragged her gently backwards, leaving her to rest her hand on Brisco’s elbow.

“Hello fellas,” said Amanda, her eyes darting nervously from face to face.

“Hello. Lord Bowler, I didn’t see you slide on in,” Dixie said. Bowler grinned in that remark and dipped his hat.

“Miss Cousins, Miss Wickwire,” Bowler said.

“You ladies seem pretty chummy,” Brisco remarked. He didn’t know if that was a relief or a new worry.

“Oh, you’d be surprised what some alone time and some girl talk can do,” said Amanda. The two women laughed.

“Let’s get going. I wanna get to the sandwiches before all of the good ones get picked over,” Bowler said. Amanda took his arm, and Dixie’s hand lighted upon Brisco’s. Hope bloomed in Brisco’s chest for the first time all day.

Maybe the four of them could handle this together.

 

 

****

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Brisco didn’t worry. Not after dancing with Amanda and the town librarian. Not after having punch and pound cake. Not after listening to Dixie’s amazingly sanitized-for-the-dance numbers and smiling and clapping along. His mind was peacefully blank, and he'd even managed to forget for the moment about John Bly.

He danced one more time with Amanda, and she kissed him once on the cheek. “What was that for?” he asked, rubbing his face. He was smiling, but his eyes were still focused onstage.

She sighed. “Nothin’,” she muttered, and moved back toward the stage.

But he definitely started worrying when he saw the Swills filtering through the crowd. He ran to the refreshment table, where Amanda and Bowler had been getting strangely chummy with each other. 

“The Swills are here,” he hissed into Bowler’s ear.

“The Swills?” Bowler snorted. “Brisco, why would they be here? They were locked up months ago.”

His question was answered by a gunshot and the sound of screams, as well as Bill Swill calling it a stick-up.

Bill was doing so by pointing his gun at his own brother’s head, but Brisco supposed the spirit of the thing had been captured. He grabbed Bowler's upper arm and they ran to capture the bandits.

 

 

****

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Dixie found herself trapped with Amanda on the other side of the room when the gunfire started. Dixie had tackled her to the floor, and the two women rolled in their lace and satin. When Amanda had fallen on the ground she'd squirmed a hand to her holster and drawn her gun. Dixie, meanwhile, felt around on the ground for something to arm herself with. Damn it, she couldn’t even find a quarter to throw!

Amanda seemed otherwise occupied, and distracted by her more feminine gestalt to boot, which was impeding her attempts at trying to get across the room. “There goes another ten cents for new windows,” she muttered to the tune of shattering glass as bullets zinged by them and citizens crawled along the ground. Then directly to Dixie, “stay behind me.” She was trying to get an angle on Phil Swill.

“Gladly,” Dixie said.

“Gladly,” Amanda mocked. “Why do I have a feeling you called these jerks into action?”

“What?” Dixie blurted out.

“Come on, Miss Cousins – you suddenly show up, then a whole day later they’re here robbing the only game in town?”

“Amanda,” Dixie whispered, “I know you think I’m trying to pull the wool over Brisco’s eyes…” she winced and trailed off, pulling the girl closer to the thick log wall behind them, “but I’m telling you the truth! I’m really trying to go straight!”

“Why should I believe you?” she frowned. “You said this dress would make guys notice me and now look at me – I’m stuck in this stupid thing trying to shoot a bad guy!”

“Amanda, don’t you have eyes? Didn’t you see the way Bowler’s been staring at you all night?”

“Really? Lord Bowler…?” She trailed off as a bullet whizzed by her ear. “We’ll talk about this later!” 

Dixie shook her head. “I’ll be damned if I’m gonna sit still while the guys are pinned down!” 

“Dixie!” Amanda hissed. But Dixie had finally found something thick and heavy enough to bop one of the Swills on the head with – a baton, thrown aside during her sanitized version of 'File My Claim', which she'd managed to rewrite into something wholesome. She crawled through the legs of every single person standing on that dance floor, crawled up behind Phil Swill and bopped him just once on the noggin, just hard enough to knock him out.

She got his gun and that was enough to get his brothers to stand up from where they'd embedded themselves and surrender. 

To each other, but it was close enough to victory for Dixie.

 

 

****

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The sheriff rewarded her handsomely, and she turned the money over to Amanda and Brisco – they needed it more, of course. The foursome walked out on the streets of Appaloosa, marveling at their fates.

“I supposed you’re really all right,” Amanda said to Dixie.

“She’s all right, but you take the cake!” said Bowler.

Amanda made a face at Bowler’s tones. “So you really liked me in all that frou-frou stuff?”

“Nah,” Bowler said. “I like you better in britches and a plaid shirt. But I thought it was making you happy. And I'll never turn down admiring a pretty lady at her happiest.”

Amanda groaned. “I thought it was finally making a guy notice me!”

“A lady of quality can wear a potato sack and still be attractive!” Dixie told her. "And I believe it's worked on Bowler." She elbowed him, and he winced and coughed.

"Miss Wickwire, would you like to accompany me for a moonlight stroll? I promise that I'll have her back at the hotel by five."

Amanda's face lit up. "I'd love to," she said.

Brisco made a face. “Are you really thinking about seeing this guy, Amanda?”

“Maybe,” she said. Then she elbowed him. “Jealous?” 

Dixie snickered and patted Brisco's roughed up, gunpowder-dusted sleeve. She didn’t need to say anything; Brisco’s expression said it all.

 

 

****

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That had been over three years ago. In that time he and Dixie had gone rail-riding through her past; he, Amanda and Bowler had formed a team at her behest, and Dixie had shown her worth and bravery after being forced to play double agent around her ex husband; had admitted they loved one another, broken up and gotten back together. She had spent an entire year in China alone only to come back and agree to marry him. The last year of his life with Dixie had involved solving crimes while she traveled the planet on a farewell tour. Now they were back in San Francisco, about to settle down at last.

Amanda and Bowler had ended up together too, with time. She had watched Bowler’s temporary reunion with his girlfriend Lenore fall apart, and had dealt with the long distance between them when Bowler had attempted to establish his own winery. Now they were married and living in Bowler’s townhouse; they had two orphaned children who were making their lives chaos between the jumpers and clients.

When Dixie asked Brisco what he was thinking of he just laughed. “Nothing,” he said with a happy sigh, and wrapped his arms tight around Dixie. He watched Amanda kiss Bowler, watched Bowler fuss as he tried to keep the kids from destroying his Lalique or leave footprints on his fancy imported rugs. For all of his fussing, Brisco immediately realized that those kids belonged in this house just as much as Bowler belonged on the trail with him – just as much as he belonged with Dixie and Amanda belonged with Bowler. 

“Oh come on, Brisco. Tell me! Whatt’re you laughing about?” Dixie wondered, leaning back from Brisco, giving him a funny look. 

“Something,” he said, and kissed her cheek.


End file.
